Antonio Vivaldi
The creator of hundreds of spirited, extroverted instrumental works, Italian composer Antonio Vivaldi is widely recognized as the master of the Baroque instrumental concerto, which he perfected and popularized more than any of his contemporaries. Vivaldi's kinetic rhythms, fluid melodies, bright instrumental effects, and extensions of instrumental technique make his some of the most enjoyable of Baroque music. He was highly influential among his contemporaries and successors: even as esteemed a figure as Johann Sebastian Bach adapted some of Vivaldi's music. Vivaldi's variable textures and dramatic effects initiated the shift toward what became the Classical style; a deeper understanding of his music begins with the realization that, compared with Bach and even Handel, he was Baroque music's arch progressive. Though not as familiar as his concerti, Vivaldi's stage and choral music is still of value; his sometimes bouncy, sometimes lyrical Gloria in D major (1708) has remained a perennial favorite. His operas were widely performed in his own time.
Details regarding Vivaldi's early life are few. His father was a violinist in the Cathedral of Venice's orchestra and probably Antonio's first teacher. There is much speculation about other teachers, such as Corelli, but no evidence to support this. Vivaldi studied for the priesthood as a young man and was ordained in 1703. He was known for much of his career as "il prete rosso" (the red-haired priest), but soon after his ordination he declined to take on his ecclesiastical duties. Later in life he cited ill health as the reason, but other motivations have been proposed; perhaps Vivaldi simply wanted to explore new opportunities as a composer. It didn't take him long. Landing a job as a violin teacher at a girls' orphanage in Venice (where he would work in one capacity or another during several stretches of his life), he published a set of trio sonatas and another of violin sonatas. Word of his abilities spread throughout Europe, and in 1711 an Amsterdam publisher brought out a set of Vivaldi's concertos for one or more violins with orchestra under the title L'estro armonico (Harmonic Inspiration). These were best-sellers (it was this group of concertos that spurred Bach's transcriptions), and Vivaldi followed them up with several more equally successful concerto sets. Perhaps the most prolific of all the great European composers, he once boasted that he could compose a concerto faster than a copyist could ready the individual parts for the players in the orchestra. He began to compose operas, worked from 1718 to 1720 in the court of the German principality of Hessen-Darmstadt, and traveled in Austria and perhaps Bohemia. Throughout his career, he had his choice of commissions from nobility and the highest members of society, the ability to use the best performers, and enough business savvy to try to control the publication of his works, although due to his popularity, many were published without his consent. Later in life Vivaldi was plagued by rumors of a sexual liaison with one of his vocal students, and he was censured by ecclesiastical authorities. His Italian career on the rocks, he headed for Vienna. He died there and was buried as a pauper in 1741, although at the height of his career his publications had earned a comfortable living.
© Rovi Staff /TiVo
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Vivaldi: The Four Seasons
Concertos - Lançado por New York Philharmonic em 18 de out. de 2016
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Les Quatre Saisons
Classical - Lançado por MFF Records em 9 de nov. de 2023
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Vivaldi: The Four Seasons
Apollo's Fire, Jeannette Sorrell, Francisco Fullana
Classical - Lançado por AVIE Records em 22 de out. de 2021
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Scenes of Horror
Il Giratempo, Max Volbers, Laila Salome Fischer
Classical - Lançado por Perfect Noise em 12 de jan. de 2024
24-Bit 48.0 kHz - Stereo -
Antonio Vivaldi: L'Estro Armonico, Op. 3 - Book 1 / Bassoon Concerto, RV 484
Classical - Lançado por Zeroh em 21 de jul. de 2017
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Vivaldi: 12 Concerti Op. 8 "Trial of Harmony & Intervention"
Classical - Lançado por CRD Records em 19 de jun. de 2007
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Per Monsieur Pisendel 2 (Six Virtuoso Violin Sonatas of the Baroque)
Adrian Chandler, La Serenissima
Classical - Lançado por Avie Records em 8 de jul. de 2014
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Vivaldi: Four Seasons - Symphonies for Strings
Budapest Strings, Bela Banfalvi
Classical - Lançado por Cobra Entertainment LLC. em 1 de dez. de 2009
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The Rise of the North Italian Violin Concerto 1690–1740 | Volume 2: Antonio Vivaldi - Virtuoso Impresario (Concertos, Arias & Sinfonia)
La Serenissima, Adrian Chandler
Classical - Lançado por AVIE Records em 10 de jul. de 2007
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The Four Seasons
Brussels Chamber Orchestra, Roby Lakatos
Classical - Lançado por Avanticlassic em 1 de out. de 2015
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Great Composers - Vivaldi
Classical - Lançado por Cavendish Music em 29 de jun. de 2009
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Antonio Vivaldi: The Four Seasons and Other String Favorites
Classical - Lançado por Cobra Entertainment LLC em 16 de ago. de 2011
24-Bit 48.0 kHz - Stereo -
Le quattro stagioni
Classical - Lançado por Zenify Records em 8 de mai. de 2020
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Vivaldi : The 4 seasons
Classical - Lançado por Classic Records em 15 de fev. de 2019
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Vivaldi: 65 Violin Concertos
Israel Chamber Orchestra, Shlomo Mintz
Classical - Lançado por Musical Heritage Society em 14 de jun. de 2019
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Relaxing Baroque
Antonio Vivaldi, Georg Friedrich Händel
Classical - Lançado por UME - Global Clearing House em 11 de jun. de 2021
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Vivaldi 5 Violin Concertos
Classical - Lançado por Onyx Classics em 16 de mai. de 2005
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The Four Seasons
Jaap van Zweden, Jan Willem de Vriend, Combattimento Consort Amsterdam
Classical - Lançado por Challenge Classics em 16 de set. de 2016
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Vivaldi Forever
Classical - Lançado por UME - Global Clearing House em 29 de jun. de 2020
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Vivaldi: Masterpieces
Classical - Lançado por Warner Classics em 29 de fev. de 2024
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Baroque Chill & Relax
Johann Sebastian Bach, Antonio Vivaldi, Georg Friedrich Händel
Classical - Lançado por UME - Global Clearing House em 21 de jan. de 2021
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